Changing Times

This is just a quick post but I wanted to share about how Greg and I were talking the other night about how just last year we were training for our first 10K and how things have changed so fast!  I remember when I started thinking about training for a 10K, the distance seemed a bit daunting.  Running 3 miles seemed to really tire me out!  But running has taught me a few things that I did not expect to learn from the sport, and that is determination, persistence, and confidence.  Once you get to a certain distance that you never thought you could run before, you realize, "Hey, I really can do this!"  So I think it was back in January of 2011 I started training for a 10K.  I remember the day I ran 6 miles for the first time....I was struggling!   I was pushing Gracie in the jogging stroller which was making it even harder, and then around mile 5, the wind started blowing at us SO hard like it did NOT want me to finish that last mile.  But I told myself to power through it, so I gripped the handlebars really tight and just gave it my all.  It was one of those moments that I'll never forget because at the time I truly felt like giving up.  But something inside of me told myself to keep going and to not give up.  After that run, I seemed to gain even more confidence in myself.  In March I ran my first 10K which was the UAH Spring Road Race!  I had done it!  Another goal achieved!  Now just one year after doing my first 10K, I am about to run my third half marathon!  My how things change in such a short amount of time!  Greg and I will be running the Oak Barrel Half Marathon in Lynchburg, TN this Saturday.  This will be Greg's first half marathon!  We are both really excited and can't wait for the race!  The thought didn't even occur to me just one year ago that I would be able to run a half marathon!  It's almost like 13.1 miles seemed impossible!  But look where we both are now.   Running really has been a blessing in my life by teaching me to be more persistent which has yielded confidence in myself to do things that I never thought were possible.   Who knows, maybe I'll be training for my first marathon this fall?